Saturday, January 31, 2009

Out of the distinct possibility I will go crazy from unemployment if I don’t keep busy, I have been doing a lot of crafts. Since we also have to be careful with our money, I’ve been trying to rethink things around the house and deconstructing some old projects in order to remake them.

I had made a three part painting to go on the wall separating our living room from our dining room, but later decided to make it a picture wall so these paintings have pretty much just been getting beaten up in our office.

I decided that was a total waste and decided to cut the top one up. I happen to LOVE the way it turned out.

I just hand drew the skull on the back and cut it out with an exact-o-knife.

(This would work with pretty much any decorative paper/wrapping paper. If you don’t want to hand draw the image you could pretty much use any stencil making technique.)

Then I framed them in some inexpensive (like $7) poster frames from walmart.

I think I might do this again but using pretty paper and our silhouettes.

*Great instructions here. Just put the paper on top and cut through both layers or use carbon paper to transfer the image.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until crust is deep golden brown and cheese is melted.

For a little more spice, top these individual pizzas with 2 jalapeno chilies, sliced, instead of green chilies.That's it. Super easy.

I made mine a little different because the only black bean dip I could find was almost five bucks so I decided to buy a regular can of black beans. Then I drained them really well, mashed them up a little with a fork, mixed in about half a tablespoon (do it to taste) each of cumin and chili powder, and then mixed the whole can (I think it was 4 oz) of green chilies into the can of beans. It tasted great and saved me almost four dollars.

I found it really easy to flatten the biscuits in between two pieces of wax paper (I baked the pizzas on parchment just to make sure they didn’t stick as well.)

I also don’t understand why the recipe calls for using only five of the biscuits when they come in eight, but I guess that’s cook books for ya.

Friday, January 16, 2009

I LOVE cookbooks and recipes to the point where I have stacks upon stacks of torn out recipes and hand written scribbles all over my house. Even though I’ve been trying to organize them since…well forever…I can’t seem to get it done.

That being said, one of my favorite cookbooks is from Sam the Cooking Guy. He has real recipes with real ingredients that don’t require a ton of work. I bookmarked almost every page in his book. I love him. LOVE HIM!

2. Pour 1/2 the whipping cream in the bottom of a 9x13-baking dish. 3. Pour chicken broth in bowl and one by one submerge each flour tortilla. 4. Place approximately 1/8 chicken mixture in each wet tortilla and roll up. 5. Place all 8 side by side in dish, sprinkle with cheese, and pour remaining whipping cream over top.

Friday, January 9, 2009

So I finally filled all the picture frames on my photo wall. It took me forever, but I had tons of pictures from Christmas and my new printer can print bad ass quality photos so I really had no excuse.

This is the wall that separates my living room from my dining room/kitchen. I just took inexpensive Ikea frames and painted them all black, hung them up and added pictures.

I found it easier to hang them using a technique I had seen on Martha’s show.

I put the frames in the order I wanted on the floor and turned them so the back (hook side) faced up. Then I used two pieces of wax paper I hade taped together (to make it wide enough) to mark where the nails would go.

I taped the wax paper on the wall and just nailed right through the paper. Once done, all I had to do was tear down the paper and transfer the frames from the floor to the wall. Easy peasy.

Today I put in the last photos and used some of those foam squares used in scrapbooking to keep the frames level.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

So I stumbled across the idea for a memo wall at Poopscape Projects. (I know the name is cooky, but she has some cool ideas so check it out.)

I had tried something similar to hang art, but the weight was too much and the wire kept sagging in the middle so I decided to try this instead. I already had the hook clips and I spent less than four dollars for the eye screws and picture hanging wire combined. It only took me about five minutes to do as well. Here are her directions:

What you'll need:

• Picture hanging kit (that comes with eyelet screws and picture wire) • Clips (I used some from Ikea, but any clips will do) • Hammer

I decided that 5 rows would be sufficient for the wall I was dealing with. I measured 5" in from the corner of the wall, hammered in a guide hole for the screw, and screwed in the eyelet screw. I threaded some picture wire through the eye, wound it tightly and pulled the wire across the wall. I used a level to make sure the wire was straight, (if it isn't, all of your stuff will slide to one end) measured 5" in from the other edge and marked it. I screwed in another eyelet screw, wound the wire through the hole and tightened the eyelet as tight as it would go. I did this for the next four rows- each 7" up from the lowest one. And that's really all there is to it. This is a really good project for people like me who like to pin a lot of crap on the wall- you only make 8 small holes in the wall instead of 200.

I used a tack instead of a nail and it was just as easy. I also bought the eye screws and wire separately since the kits come with a lot of junk I didn’t need. She didn't specify the size wire so I bought the one that holds 15 pounds. It was the smallest one they had and I was able to cut the wire with scissors.

As you can see I only made three rows, but I think I might add a few more since there’s plenty of space.

I also have another pack of those clips hiding somewhere in the mess I call a house.

All in all I like it. I plan to eventually paint my hallway so I think I’ll just frame it out with molding so I don’t have to stress about painting behind the wires.

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Welcome

My name is Alana and this is my blog.

I started Sunshine and Bones when I decided I needed a place for creative content. I am still figuring out exactly what direction I want to go in with this blog, but as of now I talk about food, music, movies, books, and crafts the most.

Book Rating System

10. One of the best books I have ever read and you’re crazy if you don’t run out and get the book immediately
9. Damn near perfection
8. Excellent – some laughing and/or crying involved
7. Very good
6. Good, but might not be for everyone
5. Blah – essentially neutral
4. Bad, but for some reason I still needed to know what happens in the end
3. Horrible, barely readable
2. One of the worst books I have ever read
1. Should be included in Dante’s seventh circle of hell for violence against art
0. Didn't finish

Ratings 6-10 are in the golden circle and are recommended without reservation.